The Chicago Bears may look at a Jay Cutler trade this offseason after shopping Brandon Marshall and teams like the Houston Texans, Washington Redskins, Tennessee Titans, NY Jets, St. Louis Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be interested in making a move if John Fox is looking at trading his quarterback following a bad 2014 season.
Cutler comes in after getting benched by former head coach Marc Trestman in favor of Jimmy Clausen and now Fox could finish things off with a trade. According to Pro Football Talk, Fox and GM Ryan Pace have been "non-committal" about Cutler's future since taking over and that could lead to the team exploring trades. The Chicago Tribune reports that the Bears are shopping Marshall in trades this offseason and they could make a move ahead of free agency opening next week.
Cutler has a high cap number and a huge contract, which could make it tough to trade him, but also could motivate the Bears to try and make a move. The cap hit for Cutler stays big for the bulk of his contract and the team has some deadline coming up for Cutler, as he will have $10 million of his salary for 2016 guaranteed if he is on the roster past next week when free agency opens. If the team trades Marshall and saves some cap space, it could give the team more flexibility to keep Cutler, but according to Michael C. Wright at ESPN, the team is looking at all of their options.
ESPN Chicago put out an article with numerous former coaches of Cutler's giving criticism about his style of play and his leadership abilities. This type of talk has been around Cutler for years, as many have faulted him for his blasé like attitude and demeanor on the sidelines. According to the article, the coaches called Cutler a "renegade" and "rogue" in his style of play and that he takes too many chances as a QB. Last season Cutler had 18 interceptions and had six lost fumbles and that is a main area of concern for the Bears moving forward.
While Wright adds that the team may give Cutler "one last shot" at keeping his job, there is a chance they look at making a move. The salary guarantee makes things tougher, but it was going to be hard to move his contract no matter what. The Jets and Titans each need a new starter and NY has the cap space to absorb his contract without any issues. The Bears are looking at trades for Brandon Marshall and that could give the team enough cap flexibility to hang onto Cutler for now.
The Texans could be an interesting option, as they were a solid QB away from making the playoffs last season. The team is trying to move Andre Johnson and cutting him loose would open up some cap space and they could be a target. Some reports have the team interested in Marshall and that could get the wheels turning on a deal.
Last season Cutler set career highs in competition percentage and passing TDs, but overall the Bears won just five games and the offense was not consistent. Cutler had 28 touchdowns last season, the most since back when he had 27 in 2009 and that was the last time he played in all 16 games for the Bears. Cutler was out one game this season while getting benched and that came after he missed five games in 2013 with injuries.